Research Group:
Electrochemistry

Currently Active:

Yes

We cover all areas of charge transfer reactions at interfaces. These affect many facets of daily life, ranging from environmental issues such as water treatment and provision of clean energy, to medical diagnostics.

Group Overview

Southampton has an established world-class reputation in electrochemistry research. Electrochemistry is a broad subject covering many aspects of fundamental science and large scale industrial processes. Electrochemistry addresses all areas of charge transfer reactions at interfaces and impacts on daily life in many immediate ways including corrosion, energy storage, water treatment and purification, clean energy generation, environmental monitoring, medical diagnostics and electrodeposition.

The Electrochemistry Group has research programmes to generate new materials and new electrochemical approaches to energy conversion and storage including research in fuel cells, thermoelectrics, lithium batteries and supercapacitors. In batteries a wide range of systems are addressed including novel Li-ion battery structures, electrode materials and electrolytes, modelling of battery performance, development of high capacity Li-air and Li-sulfur systems, sodium cells and redox flow batteries. Our work in energy is underpinned by operando and ex situ studies of well characterised systems, providing fundamental insights into electrocatalysis and charge storage.

Our work on the development and application of high-throughput methodologies in electrochemistry has been applied to functional materials discovery for a wide range of applications and for electrode modification in electroanalysis, biosensors and biofuel cells. This work has resulted in a very successful spin-out company, Ilika, with more fundamental work still being pursued within Chemistry including within the recently inaugurated Advanced Composite Materials Facility. Work in the design of microflow electrolysis cells is enabling efficient laboratory organic synthesis.

The Electrochemistry Research Group is active in the area of templated electrodeposition of nanomaterials and the applications of nanomaterials. Templated electrodeposition technologies, pioneered in Southampton, offer effective routes to novel nanostructures which have the ability to produce large quantities, or areas, of material at reasonable cost. We are currently employing nanostructured plasmonic structures as surfaces for surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) to develop sensitive, specific sensors for healthcare, environmental and security applications including point-of care diagnostics. Under the Advanced Materials by Electroplating project we are depositing semiconductor nanostructures for applications in thermoelectrics, phase change memory and IR detectors.

Highly structured electrode surfaces are also employed in the development of sensors for a wide variety of analytical applications, including deep-ocean sensors and the characterisation of ultrasonic devices. Porous microdisc electrodes are being used to provide electrodes with strong responses to parameters such as pH with reproducibility and stability not found in more conventional electrodes. Work with scanning electrochemical microscopy is providing fundamental understanding of ion fluxes and other species at interfaces. Work in bubble cavitation has led to significant commercial interest including the development of the Starstream ultrasonic cleaning nozzle.

The Group enjoys a worldwide reputation for teaching and education in Electrochemistry. Since 1969 the Group has been delivering a one week Summer School in Instrumental Methods in Electrochemistry. This advanced course is popular with industry and academia and has, since its inception, hosted over one thousand participants. In addition the course has been run overseas, notably in North America, Argentina and China. Members of the Group have also produced textbooks to teach the fundamentals and applications of electrochemistry. The Group also delivers a taught Masters degree in Electrochemistry.

Postgraduate opportunities

If you are interested in joining us either to study or to become part of our research team please select the relevant link below for further information.

PhD Opportunities. Most of the vacancies in chemistry are not individually listed. Instead, applicants are invited to list several members of chemistry whose research interests them, within one of our main research groups when applying